Fair access and children missing education

The Fair Access Team works in partnership with schools, other local authority agencies and families, to secure and maintain appropriate education for a range of vulnerable pupils who are, or might otherwise, become missing from education. The Fair Access Team aims to ensure all children of statutory school age are able to access appropriate and suitable education.

The Fair Access Team provides advice to parents, schools and practitioners for children receiving reduced hours of education, including situations where there is no clear plan for a child’s reintegration to full-time education, concerns that the provision being made is not appropriate or where support is required to increase a child’s hours to full-time education.

The following guidance and forms below are provided for schools to ensure that decisions made regarding reduced timetables are appropriate, effective and legal.

The Fair Access Team provide advice and support to practitioners and parents regarding concerns of potential off rolling of a child. OFSTED defines 'off rolling' as 'the practice of removing a pupil from the school roll without a formal, permanent exclusion or encouraging a parent to remove their child from the school roll, when the removal is primarily in the interests of the school rather than in the best interests of the pupil'. Where off rolling is reported or suspected this is always followed up with the school concerned.

 

The off rolling guidance [PDF] is provided for practitioners who are seeking advice if there are concerns that a child has been taken off roll in these circumstances.

 

The Children Missing Education strategy [PDF] is designed to enable the County Council to fulfil its statutory duties in relation to education provision, and the safeguarding and welfare of vulnerable children. It is intended to guide the work of local authority officers, schools and other agencies in the procedures and practices to be followed in order to track, monitor and maintain contact with children and young people at risk of or already missing education.

Further information

For further information, or to discuss a concern, please contact:

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